Duncan Howells is well acquainted with second box this season. 23 times the Ashburton-based trainer has visited but will be looking to swop to the winner’s box at Greyville today where he has a host of strong contenders.

One of those is Fiorella, last season’s Daisy Fillies Guineas winner. She warms up for a tilt at the Gr2 Ipi Tombe Stakes on Summer Cup day at the end of November when she contests the Gold Circle Podcast Pinnacle Stakes.

Fiorella started Champions Season a little under the radar in spite of finishing fourth behind Takingthepiece in the SA Fillies Classic but ran a superb race to beat hot favourite Snowdance in the Fillies Guineas at Greyville.

To prove that the win was no flash in the pan, she gave Sun Met winner and Equus Horse of the Year Oh Susanna a fright when only capitulating in the final strides in the Gr1 Woolavington 2000.

Fiorella made her seasonal debut in a top division sprint at Scottsville last month, turning in another cracking effort behind accomplished sprinter Wynkelder.

Mela Stregata (Candiese Marnewick)

Today’s 1400m trip will be much more to her liking and even though she gives lumps of weight to the opposition she should still prove difficult to beat.

Mela Stregata is responsible for two of the Howells 23 second placings but can put that right in the opening leg of the Pick 6. Touched off on debut, she was widely expected to make amends next time out. However, Cape Bluebell was supported in the market as if the result was already known, and so it proved, as she out-pointed the favourite with the balance of the field strung out behind.

Given Mela Stregata’s pedigree, today’s 1800m should be much more to her liking but she is up against a few others who will also enjoy the extra including Sweet Preserve who has shown promise, as have Green Caviar, Noble Approach and Oratorina.

Jet Stream is another Howells runner with claims to the winner’s enclosure after finishing runner-up at his last outing. He takes on a small field in the fourth where he should enjoy the extra and go one better.

Alyson Wright holds a strong hand in the Racing.It’s A Rush Pinnacle Stakes, her trio of runners include Flichity By Farr, second in the Gold Vase behind It’s My Turn, Cat’s Legacy who tries for a third win on the bounce and the lightly weighted Root Beer.

Best of the three could be the filly Flichity By Farr. She has not been out since early July when second behind Equus Stayer of the Year It’s My Turn in the Gold Vase and she boasted solid staying form prior to that. If anything, she takes a drop in class here and with master craftsman Anton Marcus booked for the ride off a handy galloping weight she should at least be competitive.

Top weight Crowd Pleaser is seldom far off and has done well at Greyville. However, he has to concede 5.5kg to the filly which may be beyond him.

Cat’s Legacy has finally found his best trip and landed two on the bounce. However, Crime Victim was a winner two jumps after the line when last they met. They are both at the bottom of the handicap which will make them dangerous as they stay the trip well but Crime Victim could prove to be the better this time around.

The seventh is a tricky handicap but Sarabi has been consistent and goes well over course and distance. She comes from a very much in form Paul Gadsby yard and could prove the pick. Of the balance, Tuulikki has been holding form and does best on the turf while Fancifilly is lightly raced and if ridden more patiently than when tearing off to the front last time out will be a threat. This is her third run after a break and she should strip close to her peak.

The last race on the day is another wide-open handicap but Real Vision has shown up nicely since returning from a long break. He takes a major drop in class here and has also come down in the ratings. An outside threat could come in the form of Mutawaary. Dennis Bosch has been trying him over further but her showed in his barrier trial behind the speedy but now retired Doing It For Dan that he has enough speed to trouble this field.

By Andrew Harrison

Cape Town trainer Ronnie Sheehan died on Sunday evening after a long battle with emphysema. He was 82.

The son of a trainer in Bulawayo, he rode over 200 winners in what was then Rhodesia before increasing weight forced him to call it a day.

Ronnie Sheehan (hamishNIVENPhotography)

He was already developing the colourful character that made him such a favourite with almost everyone he met and he was to recall: “I was taking off 12lb in a week and soon I was a good advert for Belsen. But one day, despite walking seven miles, I found I could take off nothing so I told my father I couldn’t carry on riding.”

He took over the stables the next day but his career was nomadic to say the least. When Zambia started racing in 1963 he was invited to move there and he enjoyed considerable success. He returned to Bulawayo in 1967 but he and his wife weren’t happy there in the war years – “every time you went anywhere you had to drive in convoys with machine guns behind you.”

He didn’t like Johannesburg either when he moved south in 1975 and he switched to Port Elizabeth for a decade – “I won everything there but we were only racing for two grand a race.” In 1986 he moved to Cape Town before deciding to try Zimbabwe once more. “I trained there for seven years but they started to go mad pinching farms and, when I had to pay 1.3 trillion dollars for a beer, I knew it was time to get out.”

That was when he set up shop at Milnerton. His last big race winner was Captain Chaos in the 2015 Cape Nursery but the one who captured punters’ hearts was Isidingo, a horse with blistering speed who could never quite last home at Kenilworth but was almost unbeatable at Durbanville.

By Michael Clower

A grossly unfair consequence emanating from a false start being called at the Greyville meeting on Sunday would not have happened had the British racing rule pertaining to false starts been in place and the National Horseracing Authority (NHA) should look into either instituting this rule or having a rethink on what constitutes a false start.

On the other hand, the worst case scenario unravelled on Sunday. In another circumstance the horse that reared could have been the odds-on favourite and many would then have been aggrieved had a false start NOT been called, presuming the horse had then run unplaced.

However, if put to the vote, rules which lead to less false starts would likely be the winner because false starts invariably lead to false results. The relevant British Horseracing Authorities (BHA) rules, outlined later in this article, lead to a virtual absence of false starts in the UK.

In the sixth race on Sunday over 1000m Good Emperor reared as the starter pressed the button and the starter deemed it thus to have not had a fair start. A false start was duly called and the red flag was waved. However, being sprinters three of the horses were unable to be restrained and had to be scratched after running the full distance of the race. The connections of this trio, one of whom had travelled all the way from Johannesburg, thus lost out on potential prize money through no fault of their own horses. Good Emperor also had to be scratched as he was injured when rearing. The punters later felt aggrieved because among the horses who bolted was the original favourite That’s Life and in the five-runner re-start the new favourite Panza finished last and thus knocked many out of the Pick 6, PA and Jackpot.

In the NHA set of rules, rule 61.5.10.1 states: Should the starter consider that through any faulty action of the starting gates or from any other cause, a fair start has not been effected, he may declare a “no start”.

There is no further addendum defining what “any other cause” is allowed to be. It is simply left to the discretion of the starter.

Anywhere in the world the starter should not press the button if a horse is up on its feet. However, a problem occurs when the horse rears a split second before the starter presses the button. In South Africa the starter has the power to rectify this mistake by immediately declaring a false start.

The starter does not have this power in Britain.

In the British Horseracing Authorities (BHA) rule book there is a special rule, rule 38, headed “False starts.”

The first part of this rule states:

38.1 The Starter may declare a false start

38.1.1 if he considers that through any faulty action of a starting gate or a starting stall a fair start has not been effected,
38.1.2 when a horse has broken away before the race has been declared Off, or
38.1.3 if, for safety reasons, the Starter releases the tape of the starting gate but does not intend to start the race. 

Thus in Britain a horse rearing at the last moment is treated the same as a horse dwelling or mis-timing the break; it is its own fault and there is no sympathy.

In South Africa, in the event of a false start not being called, there is provision in the current NHA rules to deal with horses who have been later adjudged to have suffered unfair starts. These horses are then declared non-runners provided they do not run in the first four. However, this rule itself is controversial and can never please all parties concerned.

In Sunday’s scenario the British rule would have worked well and prevented the calamity that ensued, because the only horse who would have lost out would have been Good Emperor. He had to be scratched before the re-start anyway and might have been declared a non-runner as the starter should in theory not have pressed the button when the horse was up on its feet. Furthermore, he was an outsider, so not many punters would have even noticed his non-participation.

However, there are other circumstances where the British rule would not have worked well. For example, the day Variety Club backed out of his stall as the starter pressed the button in the L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate. There would have been pandemonium that day had a false start not been called.

Whichever way it is looked at, the rules pertaining to starts can never please everybody in every scenario and they are always going to one of the most controversial aspects of racing. It should also be remembered that the NHA have to take into account the general culture of the game’s fan base. In Britain many fans simply have a love of the horse and the sport of racing whereas in South Africa betting is the dominant culture. This could be the reason the starter is given more power out here i.e. to protect the punter, but it could be argued that these powers have become counter-productive as there appear to be too many false starts. The NHA could at least take a harsher stance against horses whose quirks cause their own downfall. They could also perhaps take the distance of the race into account when allowing the starter the leeway. In 1000m races a false start will almost certainly lead to several scratchings. However, in middle distance races the horses are a lot easier to stop. The incorporation of the British rule, or a variation of it, should also at least be put on the table for discussion.

By David Thiselton

Glen Kotzen, 53 today, should be able to celebrate in style at Durbanville where he has a favourite and two second favourites among his nine runners.

The man who won South African racing’s greatest prize with Big City Life nine years ago is renowned for his cheerful optimism – a valuable commodity in a racehorse trainer as it inspires and attracts owners – and he has been in Grade 1-winning mood with his Sun Met hope Eyes Wide Open in each of the last two seasons.

Glen Kotzen

Today’s runners are highly unlikely to reach anywhere near that level but there is a lot to like about Sacred Night in the Tabonline.co.za Maiden. Bernard Fayd’Herbe’s mount has a plum draw and last time’s third to Carlas Mambo suggests (on a line through Vascostreetractor) that he should beat Gallagher. The selection opened favourite at 28-10 and probably has most to fear from the Ramsden runner Cash Call (33-10) who might well have finished closer than fourth on his most recent outing – Donovan Dillon reported that he felt something was amiss with the gelding.

Kotzen has also booked Fayd’Herbe for 11-2 shot Blush Scarlet in the first but stable companion Trap Queen has a better chance on the book and according to World Sports Betting which is quoting the filly joint second favourite at 9-2.

However the vote goes to the Justin Snaith-Richard Fourie combination of Spirit Festival who is favourite at 3-1 on the strength of last time’s second over a furlong less here. Hero’s Daughter (9-2) made a promising debut when unfancied four weeks ago and will have come on for that but her 13 draw is major disadvantage. Aziri Sun, also trained by Brett Crawford, should not be far away.

Despite having to give lumps of weight all round – including a whopping 5.5kg to the one-time Algoa Cup hope Ollivander – Kampala Campari looks good for the TAB Telebet Handicap (race two). He was beaten less than three lengths when sixth in the Matchem. That was his first race for three months and he races off the same mark.

Candice Bass-Robinson is responsible for three of the other four runners. Aldo Domeyer is on Ollivander but Ontenderhooks and Pacific Chestnut also have high class pilots in Fourie and Ryan Munger. Kampala Campari, though, remains a confident selection.

Victory for Troop The Colour in the Play Soccer 6 Handicap would be a fitting tribute to Ronnie Sheehan. Last time’s effort was a little disappointing but Domeyer’s mount looks worth an interest.

By Michael Clower

The Vaal is back in racing condition and the Inside track stages a meeting of eight maidens for Workrider’s tomorrow.

The first race over 1000m can be won by Cosmic Mist if she jumps on terms. The first-timer Sail De Lago, a Sail From Seattle filly who is from the family of the great thirteen-time Grade 1 winner Serena’s Song, and the improving See You Tyger can pick up the pieces if she doesn’t.

Sean Tarry

In the second over 1000m two horses returning from layoffs could fight it out, the consistent Tommy The Builder and Sugoi, who is by the disappointing sire Noordhoek Flyer but he is strongly built and shows speed and was not far behind some of the best of his age group back in February. The speedily bred Glass Castle can also be included.

In the third race Pink looks the best bet on the card as she should relish the step up in trip, although Welsh Pagan by Bold Silvano is a half-sister to the dam of Edict Of Nantes and is an interesting contender.

The fourth race over 1400m could be won by the improved Dynajet from pole position, although Away Game by Var out of Summer Cup winner Flirtation has to be considered and Pelican Bay is also capable.

The fifth race over 1600m is a weak affair and Gaelebale is tipped if the removal of blinkers can see him jumping better and returning to his best. Duology is an interesting first-timer by Twice Over and To The Regiment can improve with a drop in trip and a tongue tie on.

In the sixth race over 1600m Durban Bourbon returns from a six month layoff but if performing close to her last run she is the one to beat. Generoso has her 32^nd start and can go close if it pans out for her and Candela is capable of a flying finish.

In the seventh over 1800m pole position-drawn Irish Wonder Girl makes plenty of appeal despite carrying 1kg overweight and could be a banker. The risk averse can include Eternal Summer and Stormbourne Thunder.

The last race over 1800m sees the return of the frustrating Agent Kay, but he has been gelded which could make a difference. He could fight it out with Flattley. The Litigator by Master Of My Fate out of a Dynasty mare also has to be considered.

By David Thiselton

Image: Sean Tarry is the trainer of Flattley, who runs in the last race at the Vaal tomorrow.